Accelerator pedal



' June 1l, 1940. J, R, THQRP l 2,203,933

ACCELERATOR PEDAL Filed OCt. 2,- 1939 mi y /e INVENToR 23,-- 8 27 /o B zi/Q9' y 25 ATTORNEY 15 foot against extreme engine heat which may rise` Virtue 0i SllCh SDeCiC embodiment @15 `35,transmitting connections Ategral with the covering. The heel portion 22 `35 55 ,@Ea'igt 3 is a bottom viewof the pedal Withoutfits `may be adhesively attached to the upper flat sur- `55 Patentecldune l1, 1940 i i l UNITED STATES PATENT a OFFICE t t 2,203,933` i, i

a ACCELERATOR PEDAL Joel R. ThorpQWest Allis, Wis., assigner toThe t `Fulton Company, West Allis, Wis., a corporaa tion of Wisconsin a Application October 2, ,1939, Serial `No.` 297,526

` 11 claims. (01."14-513) The present invention relates in 4general to imsupporting bracket, portions of the rubber having i provements in the construction and operation of been broken away;

foot pedals, and especially accelerator pedals or Fig. 4 is a transverse section through .the pedal the like for automobiles. and supporting bracket of Fig. 1, taken along the 5 Generally dened, an object of the invention line 4-4; i i

is to provide a new and useful foot pedal which Fig. 5 is a transverse section through the pedal is simple in construction and eflicient in use. 0f Fig. 1, taken `along the line 5--5; and

Some of the more specific objects of my inven- Fig. 6 is a longitudinal section through a fragtion are as follows: t ment of the pedal and bracket assemblage, taken To provide a durable pedal assemblage, which through one of the bracket attaching buttons. 10 can be readily manufactured and installed, and While the invention has been described as which may be used for diverse purposes` being especially applicable to an automobile foot To provide an improved pedal 'for automobile accelerator pedal, it is not my intent or desire accelerators or the like, which insulates the users t0 unnecessarily reStriCt the SCOP@ 0I utility by or be transmitted through the floor boards and Referring to the drawing, my improved pedal metallic connections, and whicliwill also absorb assemblage as Shown therein, comprises in genvibration, a eral an elongatedsheet metal pedal plate 8 hav- To provide a non-slip accelerator pedal which ins an upper rubber covering 9 and an integral t cushioned to make its use restful to the operdepending rubber lug lll; a soft sponge rubber 20 lator. t t pad ll secured to the upper surface ofthe covert To provide a foot pedal accessory which may ing 9 above thel lug Ill; a detachable sheet metal `be quickly and conveniently installed, and which bracketattaching plate l2 having a rubber insert is adapted to effectively cooperate with the ac- I3` and being Secured t0 the 10We1 end of the celeratormechanisms `of various types of standplate 8 beneath the heel pad I4 0f Ythe COVerIlgfZ ard automobiles. 9, by means ofa bolt l5 andnut I6; and a sheet To provide an improved pedal structure which metal SLlPDOTihg bracket Vi having hinge Studs may be firmly engaged by the `operai-,oies foot, orbuttons I8 cooperable with the insert I3. which may beinstalled in variousjpositions, and Th? Sheet mtafl Plate 3 uponWhf-'h the `TU-i'ioei which is highly attractive in general appearance, @Verme 9 ,dlSDUSed and Which provides a rigid 30 `15mm/ide an improved foot pedal formed of support for thiscovering, may beprovided with sheet metaland rubber, `Whereintbe rubberis spaced longitudinally extending Corrugations I9, effectively attached to the reinforcingmetal, and end has its OllpOSite Side edges 20` embedded in which may be readily applied to standard motion `thickened side beads or portions 2| formed in- To provide animproved accelerator pedal which Pf, .the plate 3.11133 be Offset upWardly as Shown may be manufactured and sold at moderate` cost, 1n F155 1 and 5: and embedded 1 11 the heel had and which is readily adjustable` to suit `various M Whlch 1S alsQ formed mtegfal With the Cover ,111g Conditions of installation t 9, and themedlal part of the plate 8 may also be `These and other objects and advantages will provlded Wlth upw'rdly projecting ftegral an "40 be apparent from thefollowingdetailed descriphmm" flanges 23,V Vh1ch are embedded m the COV' tion t t i a: lcrltng 9. n acildrtloi to dthese varlous anchorages f fA clear conceptionof one embodimentof my e, Ween 1.@ p a e an Covermg githe plate 1s invention in an automobile acceleratorpedal,` may plovlded Wlth numerous holes 24 Connectmg the 5` `portionsof thefcoverngwhich are located above `45 i3? had by referring to the ,drawlpg acompany' and below the plate 8, and the` lug lllis integrally ing 'jmd forming a' part of uns spelcatlonwhere" connected with the covering 9 through other holes 111 like reference character deslgnate the Same 25, 26. lThe covering 9 and lug l0 may be cast 0I' S 1m11a 1` parts 1n th? famous Vfews; about and `vulcanized to the plate` 8, andthe lug F1g- 1 1S "a Central Yertlcal longli'fudmal ,saecttlon lll` has substantially spherical sockets 21 formed i 50 i through `011 0f mi lmpl'OVed accelerator Pedal therein for snug receptioniof the spherical upper assemblages, ShOWlng the Seme `Slightly `lflilleli end of a standard accelerator actuating rod` 28.` and applied t0 astandard accelerator rod; .A `The soft rubber cushion tread pad Il is pref- Fig.` 21S e full top VieWQf the pedal Of Fig- 1. erably formed of sponge rubber or the like, and

face of the covering 9 between the beaded side portions 2I of the latter. The padI I is preferably somewhat thicker at the toe end of the pedal and thetop of the pad II is also preferably provided With a pebble surface 29 in order to avoid slippage.

'I'he sheet metal bracket attaching plate I2 has a square socket 30 cooperable with the attaching nut I6, and the head of the clamping bolt I5 coacts with the plate 8 as shown in Fig.v 1. The insert I3 which is also formed of soft rubber, is loosely applied within the dished plate I2 and has apf proximately spherical sockets 3l therein, and is also provided with a transverse endr recess 32. The sockets 3l are adapted to receive the spherical buttons I3 in the manner shown in Figs. 4 and 6, to thereby hingedly attach the supporting bracket Il to the pedal. The bracket Il which is preferably formed of sheet metal, ,may be secured to the floor boards by means of screws or bolts penetrating the holes 33 of this bracket, and the buttons I8 are rigidly secured tothe bracket Il by riveting, welding or otherwise. l

The plates 8, I2 and the bracket I'I, may all be readily formed of sheet metalwith the aid -of simple punches and dies.

The plate 8 While being slightly upwardly distorted, has no integral downwardly projecting or depending metal projections and is substantially flat. The rubber portions of the assemblage may be readily formed of suitable rubber by casting the 'same in forms, and the sockets 2l, 3|, 32 should be so formed that 'theelements coacting therewith may be snapped into position and subsequently effectively retained by the resiliency of the rubber. The plate I2 and its insert I3, may obviously be located in any desired angular position about the central axis of the bolt I5, and when the recess 32 is associated with a supporting element such as furnished with certain automobiles, to provide a hinged support for the pedal, then the bracket Il with its buttons I8 will lnot be utilized.

Assuming the assemblage to be properly constructed in the manner above described, the buttons I8 of the bracket I1 may be pushed within the sockets 3| of the insert I3, either with the bracket I'I .pointing forwardly as in Fig. l, or rearwardly with respect to its pivot buttons 3I. The accelerator 28 may be caused to coact with either ofthe spherical sockets 21 of the lug- I0,

and the pedal may assume various angular positions with respect to the supporting bracket I'I. Application of foot pressure to the soft pad II will then cause the pedal to swing about the ,spherical buttons I8, and the spherical head of the rod Z8 will permit swinging of the pedal relative to the rod 28. The cushion II will be slightly compressed during the downward swinging of the pedal, but will assume its natural form when the foot pressure is released. The improved pedal assemblage can obviously be readily installed under varying conditions of operation and in some cases the bracket Il will not be utilized, but a hinged support may then be caused to coact with the recess 32 of the insert I3.

c From the foregoing detailedzdescription it will be apparent that my present invention provides an improved pedal assemblage which is simple and compact in construction and which may be readily installed under varying conditions. The rubber pad 9 of the improved structure is firmly attached to a relatively simple reinforcing plate 8 and the adjustability of the plate I2 andinsert'l 3 makes the assemblage readily'applicable .to varying conditions of installation. 'Ihe lug III is `rmly united to the covering 9, andthe pad II may likewise be rmly attached to this covering, and the covering is obviously firmly attached to the plate `8 by means of the side beads 2|, offset portion 22, and flanges 23. The assemblage besides being durable in construction and readily installable, has neat appearance, and the improvement has proven highly successful in actual commercial use. It has been found that the improved pedal assemblage can be applied to many of the standard automobiles, and besides being restful in operation and safely manipulable, the improved pedal insulates the operators foot against engine heat and absorbs excessive vibration.

It should be understood that it is not intended to limit this invention to the exact details of construction, or to the precise mode of use, herein shown and described, for various modifications Within the scope of the claims may occur to persons skilled in the art.

I claim:

1. A pedal assemblage comprising, a pedal plate having heel and toe portions, a rigid dished mounting plate having a separable flexible socketed insert therein adjustably secured to the heel portion of said pedal plate, and means for connecting the toe portion of said pedal plate to a mechanism to be actuated.

2. A pedal assemblage comprising, a pedal plate having heel and toe portions, a rigid dished mounting. plate having a separable flexible socketed insert therein adjustably secured to the heel portion of said pedal plate, means coacting with the sockets of said insert for swingably support- .ing said pedal plate, and means for connecting the toe portion of saidpedal plate to a mechanism to be actuated. 1 Y

3; A pedal assemblage comprising, a pedal plate having a resilient covering on its upper face provided with heel and toe portions, a rigid dished mounting plate having a separable flexible socketed insert therein adjustably attached to the lower face of the "heel portion of said pedal plate, a flexible socketed lug secured to said pedal plate and covering at the toe portion thereof. and spherical elements confined Within the sockets of said insert and said lug.

4. A pedal assemblage comprising, a pedal plate having a resilient covering on its upper face provided with heel and toe portions, a rigidI dished mounting plate having a separable flex ible socketed insert therein adjustably attached to the lower face of the heel portion of said pedal plate, a flexible socketed lug secured to said pedal plate and covering at the toe portionr thereof, a supporting bracket having a spherical portion coacting with the socket of said insert to swingably suspend` saidvpedal plate, and a mechanism actuating rod having a spherical head coacting with the socket of said lug.

5. A pedal `assemblage comprising, a pedal 6. A pedal assemblage comprising, a pedal plate having a rubber top covering and a depending socketed lug depending from the toe portion of said covering, a sponge rubber pad secured to said V'covering `above" said lug,` a'heel plate secured to the lbottom of the v heel portion 2,203,983 f of said pedal plate and having a socketed rubber insert thereon, means for adjustably attaching said plates to each other, and a hingebracket having spherical buttons cooperable with the sockets -of said insert to swingably support said pedal plate.

7. A pedal assemblage comprising, a relatively flat sheet metal pedal plate, a rubber covering for the top of said pedal plate having toe and heel portions, a socketcd lug depending from the toe portion of said pedal plate and being formed integral with said covering, a dished plate secured to the heel portion of said pedal plate, a

socketed rubber pivot element secured to the heel portion of `said pedal plate by said dished plate,

and a bracket having spherical buttons ar-` ticulably associated with the sockets of said element.

8. A pedal assemblage comprising, a sheet metal pedal plate having toe and heel portions, `a rubber covering for the .entire top of `said plate and in which the edge `of said plate is embedded,

a socketed lug depending from the toe portion of said plate and being formed integral with said covering, a dished plate adjustably secured to the heel portion of said pedal plate, a socketed rubber insert secured to said pedal plate byV said dished plate, and hinge means coacting Withthe socket of said insert.

9. A pedal assemblage comprising, a sheet metal pedal plate having toe and heel portions,

a rubber covering for the entire top of said plate metal pedal plate having toe and heel portions, a

rubber covering for the entire top of said plate and in which the .edge of said plate is embedded, a socketed lug depending from the toe portion of said plate and being formed integral with said covering, a dished plate adjustably secured to the heel portion of said pedal plate, `a socketed. rubber insert secured to said pedal plate by said dished plate, and a bracket having several fixed pivot b-uttons reversibly cooperable with sockets in saidrubber insert.

ll.` A pedal assemblage comprising, a pedal platel provided with heel and toe portions, a :mounting plate having a exible socketedinsert therein attached to the lower faceof the heel portion of said pedal plate, a exible lug provided` with a plurality of sockets secured to` said pedal plate atthe toe portion thereof, means coacting with the sockets of said insert for swingably supporting said pedal plate, and means coacting with one of the sockets of said lug for actuating a mechanism.

JOEL R. THORP. 

